1. Field
The present disclosure relates generally to telecommunications, and amongst other things, to systems and methods to create a fingerprint for a wireless network.
2. Background
The demand for wireless information services has led to the development of an ever increasing number of wireless networks. CDMA2000 1x is just one example of a wireless network that provides telephony and data services. CDMA2000 1x is a wireless standard promulgated by the Third Generation Partnership Project 2 (3GPP2) using Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology. CDMA is a technology that allows multiple users to share a common communications medium using spread-spectrum processing.
A competing wireless network that is commonly employed in Europe is Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). Unlike CDMA2000 1x, GSM uses narrowband time division multiple access (TDMA) to support wireless telephony and data services.
Some other wireless networks include General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) which supports high speed data services with data rates suitable for e-mail and web browsing applications, and Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) which can deliver broadband voice and data for audio and video applications.
These wireless networks can generally be thought of as Wide Area Networks (WAN)s that employ cellular technology. Cellular technology is based on a topology in which a geographic coverage region is broken up into cells. Within each of these cells is a fixed Base Transceiver Station (BTS) that communicates with mobile users. A Base Station Controller (BSC) is typically employed in the geographic coverage region to control the BTSs and to interface with the appropriate gateways to various packet-switched and circuit-switched networks.
As the demand for wireless information services continue to increase, mobile devices are evolving to support integrated voice, data, and streaming media while providing seamless network coverage between cellular WANs and wireless Local Area Networks (LAN)s. Wireless LANs generally provide telephony and data services over relatively small geographic regions using a standard protocol, such as IEEE 802.11, Bluetooth, Home RF, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), or the like. A LAN may be provided in an office building, home, or public place.
The existence of wireless LANs provides a unique opportunity to increase user capacity in a cellular WAN by extending cellular communications to the unlicensed spectrum using the infrastructure of the wireless LAN. However, precautions should be taken to prevent excess power consumption when the mobile device is searching for a wireless LAN. A continuous search for all wireless LANs in the vicinity of the mobile device may significantly reduce battery life because of the sheer number of different frequency bands that must be scanned. Moreover, some wireless LANs that may be found through a continuous search may be of no interest to the mobile device for a variety of reasons. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a mobile device capable of locating wireless LANs in WAN with minimal search time.